1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to an apparatus for sorting sheets being supplied thereto and in particular concerns a sheet sorting apparatus which is adapted to collect copied sheets from a copying machine in proper order of page sequence.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The sheet sorting apparatus which have been heretofore employed in business machines or pattern (or image) recording apparatus such as copying machines, printers or the like and often referred to as sorters may generally be classified into two types. One type of sheet sorting apparatus comprises a movable bin assembly constituted by a plurality of vertically aligned sheet receiving trays and a stationary sheet transporting path provided by sheet discharging and transporting means arranged stationarily between a sheet discharging exit of a recording apparatus and the bin assembly. The second type of sheet sorting apparatus includes a plurality of bins arranged at a fixed position and adapted to receive the sheets discharged from the recording apparatus, and transporting means provided at the discharge side of the recording apparatus for distributing sequentially the sheets as discharged into the plurality of bins, wherein the transporting means is movably arranged so as to effect the transportation and distribution of the sheets. The present invention is intended as an improvement in the second type of sheet sorting apparatus. A typical structure of the second type of sheet sorting apparatus is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,356,362. This prior art sheet sorting apparatus or so-called sheet sorter includes as many as fifty pockets for receiving the incoming sheets and is implemented in an extremely large size having a height on the order of six or more feet. A conveyor system as employed for transporting the sheets is constituted by a number of belts arrayed in a row, involving complications in the structure which must necessarily be provided with weights for maintaining the transporting belts in a tensioned state and to accommodate possible variations in the length of the transporting path. The sorter of such structure is obviously not suited for use in combination with an electrophotographic copying apparatus.